With the creation of the world-wide-web and high speed computer networks, the paradigm for personal computer usage has shifted. In the past, users primarily used their personal computers to run programs, and to create, store and manipulate data that was located on their local hard-drive. Only rarely would a user store or manipulate data that was located on a networked drive, or run a program that was provided as a networked service, and even then, the programs and data were usually restricted to programs and data residing on local area networks. Today, more and more users are storing more and more of their data on remote data servers, and using remotely provided web-based applications (e.g., Software as a Service (“SaaS”) programs) to manipulate and organize that data. For example, many users today store their personal email and contact information, and even pictures, videos, and music archives on remote servers, and access that data using third party applications that are provided through and controlled by a web-browser.
Cloud computing is a style of computing in which computing resources such as application programs and file storage are remotely provided over the Internet, typically through a web browser. Many web browsers are capable of running applications (e.g., Java applets and Java Scripts), which can themselves be application programming interfaces (“API's”) to more sophisticated applications that are running on remote servers. In the cloud computing paradigm, a web browser interfaces with and allows a user to control an application program that is running on a remote server. Through the browser, the user can create, edit, save and delete files on the remote server via the remote application program.
Due to this shift in computer usage, today's computer users are unlikely to want or need many of the bells and whistles provided by modern operating systems. They do not need to worry about file structures or organizing or backing up their data, because much of their data is stored, organized and backed up for them on the cloud. They do not need to worry about loading and updating software, such as augmented user interface software, because most of the software they use is provided to them when needed as a cloud-based service. Instead, today's computer users are more interested in quickly logging onto their computer, launching a web browser, and accessing data and programs of interest to them, which are accessible through the world wide web.
Cloud computing promises a user ubiquitous, any-time access to all of that user's information and applications. For users with special needs, e.g., blind users, this promise can only be realized by moving away from the current paradigm of installing special needs software such as augmented user interfaces on the user's personal computer to a cloud-based paradigm where the user's special needs software is provided over the network as a cloud-based service. Failing to do this would result in a significant proportion of the user-base missing out on the advantages of cloud computing.